Salary savings from open positions in state government, cutting a school facilities program and several climate initiatives, delaying funding for public transit — these are some of the first steps that California officials plan to take to deal with a looming multibillion-dollar budget deficit.
Facing a shortfall estimated at somewhere between $38 billion and $73 billion next year, Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders announced today an “early action” plan to tackle part of that gap before the regular budget process later this spring.
The $17.3 billion package includes some program cuts, but mostly relies on new revenue, internal borrowing and funding delays and shifts for savings. It is expected to come up for a vote in the Legislature next week.
“I thank our legislative leaders for their partnership in taking this major step to address the shortfall with a balanced approach that meets the needs of Californians and maintains a strong fiscal foundation for the state’s future,” Newsom, who has been calling for early budget action since January, said in a statement.
Newsom, Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire of Santa Rosa and Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas of Salinas, all Democrats, signaled two weeks ago that they planned to take this step, but continued to negotiate the details. Cuts to housing and homeless programs that Assembly Democrats objected to were recently removed.
Among the major proposals are a nearly $4 billion expansion of a tax on health insurance plans that allows the state to draw matching federal funds; delaying $1 billion for transit infrastructure and $550 million for preschool, transitional kindergarten and full-day kindergarten facilities; shifting $1.8 billion of cap-and-trade revenue, intended to reduce greenhouse…
Read the full article here
